Frank YangFor a guy who made his name on being sad and lonely, Justin Vernon sure has a lot of friends. The first Bon Iver record, For Emma, Forever Ago, became the soundtrack for broken hearts when it was released in 2008 and with this year’s self-titled letting some sun into his secluded musical cabin, so to speak, his legion of followers continued to swell. As of this past Tuesday night, he could list two sold-out shows at Massey Hall (approximately 5500 people), four Grammy nominations and high rankings on countless year-end reviews amongst his accomplishments – not bad for someone specializing in writing anthems of being one.

I couldn’t count myself amongst his devoted followers, though. While I appreciated both records well enough, they never reached that crucial frequency of emotional resonance with me that they clearly had with so many others – one perk of not having gone through any kind of traumatic breakup in the last while, I suppose. But having not seen him/them perform since catching a bit of one of his sets at SXSW 2008 and being genuinely curious as to what the live experience was like now – particularly in one of the city’s hallowed venue filled with his devotees – I made sure I was at the first evening of the two-night stand.

Support on this tour came from London’s Lianne La Havas; a new artist but not an unknown, having already garnered much attention in the UK and a spot on the BBC Sound Of 2012 long list despite having only a 4-song 10″ EP in Lost & Found to her name (plus a free-to-download live EP). While she came out on stage solo with just a guitar, she immediately made friends by flashing a megawatt smile and asking to take a photo of the audience before playing a note, then being charmed turned into being impressed when she began to play. Singing with a calm, conversational delivery, she mined a jazz-pop sound with an immediacy that belied its sophistication and showcased her intricate, rhythmic guitarwork and rich, soulful voice. Though she’d come from London at Vernon’s behest, it wasn’t hard to imagine her back on this stage before too long based entirely on her own merits.

To recreate the solitary vibe of the recorded works, Bon Iver wouldn’t need to be anything more than Justin Vernon, a guitar and maybe some snow. So that Bon Iver was, instead, a nine-piece band armed with an orchestra’s worth of horns, percussion and guitars was the first sign that those expecting the show to be a celebration of sadness might be in for a surprise. Intimacy was not to be the tone of the evening, with the introverted nature of the songs checked in favour of grand, extroverted arrangements with big, jammy breakdowns, choral vocals and a constant trilling of horns and strings, all accented by a pulsing, occasionally strobing light show. No, no log cabin atmosphere here.

The way that opener “Perth” segued smoothly via instrumental breakdown into “Minnesota, WI” set the tone for the evening, with few breaks between songs or even much in the way of silence. Perhaps that responsibility was assigned to the audience, because they were pin-drop quiet throughout the show, utterly respectful and even reverent. It was notable that the devoted didn’t seem to mind at all that the songs that they had connected so directly and deeply to weren’t nearly as open-hearted as they were on record, the constant flurry of instrumentation effectively keeping the listener from getting too close. Some of the interludes worked, like Colin Stetson’s circular breathing clinic as his saxophone bridged “Holocene” and “Blood Bank”, but a lot of it felt overdone and unnecessary.

This was made especially clear when his bandmates left Vernon alone on stage for a tender solo electric reading of “Re: Stacks”, which he dedicated to Kathleen Edwards and was head and shoulders the highlight of the night. Even though it only lasted the one song, the moment of vulnerability echoed through the rest of the show which felt more open, more plaintive. Set closer “Skinny Love” pulled two-thirds of the band from their instrumental duties and cast them as a gospel chorus complete with hand claps and foot stomps and the show finale of “The Wolves (Act I and II)” struck the perfect balance of beauty and violence thanks to the room-shaking efforts of the dual drummers.

It’s odd that the person who went into the show demanding the least left as one of the few who expected more, but I’d have preferred more starkness, more of the sadness that I thought was what gave the Bon Iver records their power. But perhaps, given that things seem to be going pretty damn well for Vernon these days, trying to tap into that emotional well or act as though he had might have felt dishonest to him. Or maybe he just wanted to do something different. In any case, it’s completely and objectively true that Bon Iver, the live experience, was an impressive one and left the vast majority satisfied. And that on the way home, it began to snow.

The Toronto Sun, Toronto Star, and NOW have reviews of the show, while Paste has a feature piece on the artist who made their album of the year. Lianne La Havas is profiled in NOW, The Fader, and The Guardian and performed sessions for Le Blogotheque and Black Cab Sessions.

Photos: Bon Iver, Lianne La Havas @ Massey Hall – December 6, 2011
MP3: Bon Iver – “Holocene”
MP3: Bon Iver – “Calgary”
MP3: Bon Iver – “Blood Bank”
MP3: Bon Iver – “Skinny Love”
Stream: Lianne La Havas – “Don’t Wake Me Up” (live)
Video: Bon Iver – “Holocene”
Video: Bon Iver – “Calgary”
Video: Bon Iver – “Wolves (Act I & II)”
Video: Lianne La Havas – “No Room For Doubt”

Californian ambient-electronica artist Tycho will be at Wrongbar on January 14 as part of a tour to showcase his album Dive.

MP3: Tycho – “Hours”
MP3: Tycho – “Coastal Brake”

The Heartless Bastards will be at The Horseshoe on February 20 in support of their new record Arrow, due out the week before on February 14, tickets $15.50 in advance. The first MP3 from the album comes courtesy of Rolling Stone.

MP3: The Heartless Bastards – “Parted Ways”

Just here in October, Neon Indian have set a return engagement for their latest Era Extraña at The Phoenix on May 8. Admission $20 in advance, full dates at Pitchfork.

Video: Neon Indian – “Polish Girl”

So apparently Toronto has a new outdoor venue up at Downsview Park, and it’s called The Meadows and may be an inland equivalent to Echo Beach at Ontario Place. In any case, it’ll be hosting at least one show next Summer – Foster The People on June 19. The Grid has a little more info on the space.

MP3: Foster The People – “Pumped Up Kicks”

Rolling Stone talks to Kevin Barnes of Of Montreal about their new record Paralytic Stalks, out February 7. Pitchfork has a track from the album available to download.

MP3: Of Montreal – “Wintered Debts”

Spin has posted the first MP3 from the new Shearwater record Animal Joy and it sounds a damn sight tougher than anything off their last three records. Quite keen to hear the rest. It’s out February 14 and they’re at Lee’s Palace on February 21.

MP3: Shearwater – “Breaking The Yearlings”

Also in preview mode is School Of Seven Bells, showing off the first track from their new record Ghostory, out February 28. Ben Curtis and Ally Deheza talk to NBC New York about the new record.

MP3: School Of Seven Bells – “The Night”

JAM checks in with Matt Berninger of The National, who’ve begun work on their next record but make no guarantees about when it might be done. They play the Air Canada Centre tonight.

The Toronto Star and NOW profile The War On Drugs in advance of their show at The Horseshoe on Friday night.

Spinner chats with Annie Clark of St. Vincent. She’s at The Phoenix on December 15.

The Quietus talks to Real Estate. They’re at Lee’s Palace on January 20.

The Wooden Birds have released a new video from Two Matchsticks.

Video: The Wooden Birds – “Criminals Win”

How do you make Mates Of State even cuter? Put them behind a Tiny Desk. NPR did.

Daytrotter has posted up a session with The Submarines.

Having just confirmed the existence of their new record Reign Of Terror last week, Pitchfork reports that Sleigh Bells have given it a release date of February 14.

Andrew Bird has announced a March 6 release for his new record Break It Yourself; details at Exclaim.

The AV Club reports that bassist Shonna Tucker has amicably left Drive-By Truckers.

Quite a scare for Guided By Voices fans yesterday when word came that they had cancelled their European festival commitments for 2012 and had supposedly split up again. A clarification from the band’s PR confirmed that all live dates had been pulled due to “personal problems”, but that in addition to the January 1 release of Let’s Go Eat The Factory, the band were already working on a second album of new material entitled Class Clown Spots A UFO with a targeted release date in May.

But the silver lining of that cancellation was that it allowed The Afghan Whigs to confirm that they had reunited for their first shows in 13 years and would be taking GBV’s place at the May All Tomorrow’s Parties festival in May as well as curating their own event in New Jersey in September. Details at Spin.

Kisha BariIf you were to ask anyone at SXSW this past March what was the best thing they’d seen, odds are you’d have heard “Charles Bradley” in response; I certainly did. Like his Daptone labelmate Sharon Jones, the Florida-born, Brooklyn-based classic soul singer had travelled a long, hard road filled with false starts and personal tragedies, but with the release of his first full-length album No Time For Dreaming earlier this year and accompanying praise for both his recordings and performances, it seemed he was finally getting his due.

Or so I heard. I didn’t catch any of his sets in Austin and waiting for him to tour through Toronto – as I was certain he would considering he made appearances at Osheaga in Montreal and Sappyfest in Mount Allison in late July – proved fruitless. I had no doubt that the wide-eyed, breathless testimonials about the power of his shows was deserved, but I had yet to witness it for myself. Well as it turns out, I only had to wait the better part of a year – Charles Bradley & His Extraordinaires have just announced a date at Lee’s Palace on February 11 of next year, tickets $22.50 in advance and on sale this Friday. Which is not to complain – after all, Bradley had to wait decades for his shot. A year’s not so bad. If you’re a fan of old-school soul – and everyone should be – you ought to be there.

MP3: Charles Bradley – “The World (Is Going Up In Flames)”
MP3: Charles Bradley – “Now That I’m Gone”
Video: Charles Bradley – “Heartaches And Pain”
Video: Charles Bradley – “The World (Is Going Up In Flames)”

The Smith Westerns are rolling into The Horseshoe on January 27, tickets $15 in advance. It’s unlikely they’ve got a new album finished and ready for sneak release, so assume this is continuing to support this year’s Dye It Blonde.

MP3: The Smith Westerns – “Still New”

Oklahoma’s Other Lives got a bit of a profile boost when they were announced as the openers for the first leg of Radiohead’s US tour this Spring, but seeing as how there’s no local date for that bill as yet, fans and the curious will be pleased to know that they’ll be in town at The Drake Underground on February 14, tickets $12.50. That’s a bit less than Radiohead tickets would cost, I think.

MP3: Other Lives – “For 12″
MP3: Other Lives – “Tamer Animals”
MP3: Other Lives – “Song Song”

With the final – presumably – R.E.M. release in Part Lies Part Heart Part Truth Part Garbage 1982-2011 now out, it’s exit interview time. Michael Stipe explains the band’s decision to disband in conversation with Salon and CNN while Mike Mills chats with Billboard, Time, Spin, Consequence Of Sound, and Scotland On Sunday – he also talks to Spinner about Occupy Wall Street – and USA Today gets some quotes from all three members. Blurt, meanwhile, solicits testimonials from a range of artists and fans.

It’s not an official Neutral Milk Hotel video or anything, but this clip put together by Naomi Yang of Galaxie 500/Damon & Naomi is noteworthy if for no other reason than the song was, apparently, written about her.

Video: Neutral Milk Hotel – “Naomi”

The Stool Pigeon and Spinner talk to Dee Dee of Dum Dum Girls.

The Washington Post interviews Ted Leo.

Stereogum checks in with School Of Seven Bells to see how their first album as a duo is coming along. At least well enough to have a title – Ghostory – and ballpark release date of next Spring. Update: The record is out February 28.

Guitar Junkie, The Riverfront Times and Apes On Tape talk to Lauren Larsen of Ume.

nicoletakins.comThat Nicole Atkins’ 2007 debut album Neptune City was a favourite in these parts is a matter of public record, but does that mean it was a perfect record? No, not at all. As a vocalist and songwriter, Atkins has never tried to hide her New Jersey roots or the classic rock, blues and country traditions that informed her formative years so drenching her first record in big, romantic orchestral arrangements was a gutsy case of trying something completely unexpected from the get-go. And by and large, it succeeded though it was more because of Atkins herself and sometimes despite the production choices.

So opting to strip things down for her second effort, the just-released Mondo Amore, might seem a little less creatively adventurous but hearing Atkins operating completely within her comfort zone and playing to her strengths more than validates the decision. The front half of Amore showcases the rock instincts that were sublimated on Neptune City, from the sinister and slinky leadoff “Vultures” through the countrified “Cry Cry Cry” and barrelling “You Come To Me” – some of the genre nods can be a little on the nose, but their energy more than makes up for it.

As invigorating as side one of Mondo Amore is, it’s the smouldering side two that really seals the deal, dimming the lights, raising the reverb and spotlighting Atkins at her wounded, torchy best. The compositions themselves wouldn’t have been out of place on Neptune City, but whereas a track like “Heavy Boots” might have reached its crescendo accompanied by legions of strings, Amore drives the emotional quotient home with cavernous piano and understatedly snarling electric guitar. There’s still plenty of drama on tap, but it’s delivered more naturally and thus more effectively – Amore is less theatre, more boozecan, and all the better for it.

The New York Times, Seattle Post-Intelligencer, Palo Alto Daily News, Largehearted Boy, Spinner, NorthJersey.com, Blurt, Interview and BlogCritics all have features on Nicole Atkins. Her North American tour is underway and will make its way to The Horseshoe in Toronto on February 26. The whole of Mondo Amore is currently available to stream at Spinner.

MP3: Nicole Atkins – “Vultures”
Video: Nicole Atkins – “Vultures”
Stream: Nicole Atkins / Mondo Amore

Conor Oberst discusses the new Bright Eyes modus operendi with Billboard. The People’s Key is out next week and they’re at The Sound Academy on March 13.

Pitchfork is streaming Okkervil River’s new non-album single “Mermaid” while talking to Will Sheff about their new record I Am Very Far, due out May 10. Sheff also takes Spin through the new album track by track.

Austin360 celebrates Shearwater drummer Thor Harris.

Buffalo Tom is making an acoustic EP entitled Bones available for free download from their website in advance of the release of new album Skins next week.

Le Blogotheque has a Take-Away Show with Local Natives.

The Telegraph profiles Drive-By Truckers, whose latest Go-Go Boots arrives February 22.

There’s a new MP3 from J Mascis’ forthcoming solo record Several Shades Of Why, out March 15. He’s at The Great Hall on March 11 for Canadian Musicfest.

MP3: J Mascis – “Is It Done”

Oh hey it’s a new Kills video. Blood Pressures is out April 4 and they play The Sound Academy on May 1.

Video: The Kills – “Satellite”

Phantogram have released a new video from last year’s Eyelid Movies.

Video: Phantogram – “When I’m Small”

Ahead of their show at The Horseshoe later that evening, Telekinesis will play an acoustic in-store at Sonic Boom at 7PM on March 6. Their new record 12 Desperate Straight Lines is out next Tuesday.

MP3: Telekinesis – “Car Crash”

Magnet Q&As John Vanderslice, whom they’re letting play website editor for the week.

The final deluxe-ass Pavement reissue – that for Terror Twilight – will see the light of day sometime in November.

Eater talks food and drink with Ted Leo.

The Phoenix New Times interviews Interpol drummer Sam Fogarino while eye catches up with School Of Seven Bells. They’re both at The Sound Academy on February 15.

Exclaim reports the new TV On The Radio record has a name – Nine Types Of Light – and should be out this Spring.

And because for a short time yesterday people trying to get the new Strokes MP3 basically broke the internet, here it is. It sounds like The Strokes. Angles is out March 22.

MP3: The Strokes – “Under Cover Of Darkness”

MergeJust a short one today as I’m still recovering from a) replacing all the carpet in my apartment with hardwood (well, laminate) in a single day and b) trying to clean up the enormous mess generated by a). Exhausting stuff, that.

So I’ll let Dan Bejar take it away. Now a couple years removed from Trouble In Dreams and with Pornographer duties largely done with for a while, Dan is getting Destroyer back into gear. Following up last year’s epic-length “Bay Of Pigs” 12″, Bejar released a second limited edition 12″ for the song “Archer On The Beach” earlier this month, but if you haven’t already got your copy secured, then you’re out of luck – all 1000 copies are spoken for. But you can stream the song, and its spoken-word b-side “Grief Point”, courtesy of Merge.

There’s still plenty of time to reserve a copy of the new Destroyer LP Kaputt, though – it’s not out for another two months, on January 25. The first MP3 is now up and while it’s not a cover of the Luna song (how great would that be?), it’s a pretty sweet if chilled out tune that incorporates some of the electronic and atmospheric touches of the aforementioned 12″ releases and some wonderfully questionable saxophone. I’ve been in the mood for a new Destroyer record for a while now – looking forward to hearing the rest of this.

MP3: Destroyer – “Chinatown”
Stream: Destroyer – “Archer On The Beach”/”Grief Point”

Montreal represents on March 5 when Lee’s Palace welcomes 2008 Polaris Prize shortlisters Plants & Animals and 2010 Polaris Prize winners Karkwa. Tickets for the show are $15 in advance.

MP3: Plants & Animals – “Tom Cruz”
MP3: Karkwa – “Dors Dans Mon Sang”

Exclaim has details on a Nick Drake tribute/benefit concert taking place at Trinity-St. Paul’s in Toronto on November 28.

BBC talks to Mark Hamilton of Woodpigeon on the topic of concert taping. Mark has been posting various sundry MP3s to the Woodpigeon site all Fall, including this live solo one from Montreal’s CJLO.

MP3: Woodpigeon – “…And as the Ship Went Down, You’d Never Looked Finer (Live on CJLO)”

S. Carey, in town at the Horseshoe on December 19, is featured in a Daytrotter session.

School Of Seven Bells have released a new video from Disconnect From Desire and have been tapped to open up for Interpol on their North American tour next year – including the February 15 stop at the Sound Academy in Toronto.

Video: School Of Seven Bells – “I L U”

Also with a new video is Sufjan Stevens, who’s taken the song title to heart with regards to the clip’s art direction. Tribute will be paid to a simpler Sufjan by means of a tribute album to his Seven Swans record featuring Bonnie Prince Billy and a number of Asthmatic Kitty artists. Seven Swans Reimagined will be out on March 22.

Video: Sufjan Stevens – “Too Much”

The Radio Dept.’s Martin Carlberg discusses the band’s modest career ambitions with Spinner. Their singles and b-sides compilation Passive Aggressive is out on January 25 and they make their Toronto debut at Lee’s Palace on February 7.

M83 mastermind Anthony Gonzalez talks to Pitchfork about his plans for his next record.

Nick Cave tells Spinner that a new Nick Cave record should be out next year – just as soon as he writes it. In the meantime, Grinderman remains on the front burner – The AV Club talks to Warren Ellis about making Grinderman 2.

Frank YangThe “see something new” mandate largely fell apart on the third night of Halifax Pop Explosion, but with good reason; when you get the opportunity to see Basia Bulat perform with a symphony, you take it. Bulat was the third artist to be brought together with Symphony Nova Scotia as part of the Pop Explosion, Ron Sexsmith and Owen Pallett had done so in past years, and it was Pallett who crafted the orchestral arrangements of Bulat’s songs for this performance which took place in the Rebecca Cohn Auditorium on the Dalhousie campus.

The evening was structured more like a symphony concert than a pop one, split into two halves and opening with the symphony performing a piece by Toronto composer Jordan Pal before being joined by Bulat and bandmates Holly Coish on vocals and taropatch and Bobby Bulat on drums. Bulat’s songs have often been called orchestral-pop and often come out of the box lovingly adorned with strings, brass and woodwinds, but the strength of her work comes from the emotional directness of their simple folk hearts. So to hear them with their sonic dressings increased tenfold (or so) was fascinating to witness. Pallett’s treatments took those supporting elements and gave them a new level of animation, sometimes taking hues that were muted and enhancing them to technocolour levels or simply adding all-new shapes and colours and in doing so, inverting the tone of the song completely. The symphony emphasized the shadows lurking on “Heart Of My Own” and practically inverted the usually-joyous “I Was A Daughter” into an elegiac sort of farewell.

For me, the real test would be “The Shore”, which was pretty much perfect in its austere presentation on Heart Of My Own and was even more stunning in its live solo arrangement. The rearranged version pretty much came out of it a draw, with the timpani and percussion giving it a stirring, tidal rumble but the trilling woodwinds distracting from the song’s emotional heft. And that would largely sum up how the collaborative pieces went – a lot of embellishment and some distraction. When they played together, it could feel trepidatious, particularly rhythmically, as though songs that were used to flitting freely in light Summer dresses were now having to move with heavy, fancy formal wear on. But even so, in the end the pieces were always made winners not by the massive orchestra or Pallett’s contributions, but by Bulat and her songs.

In addition to the eight orchestral pieces, Bulat played a number of selections either with Coish and her brother or solo, and those performances – aided by the theatre’s stunning acoustics – were just as much highlights of the night as those with the symphony. In particular, one of two new songs – “It Can’t Be You” – featured a vocal performance from Bulat that was just jaw-dropping, and the encore-closing unamplified stomp-and-clap of “Death Come Creeping” on the fancy auditorium stage in front of the orchestra, was as wonderful as it was incongruous. More, actually.

I won’t say that the symphonic treatments improved Bulat’s songs – I think they’re “right” the way they were originally conceived and presented – but that wasn’t the intention in the first place. Rather, it was an artistic and musical experiment for everyone involved that yielded interesting and frequently beautiful results, and one that I still feel privileged to have gotten to see. Here’s hoping that more orchestral collaborations are in the cards for the future so that others can share that privilege and the works can evolve further as their own entities.

This ended up being the only thing I attended on the third night of HPX – partly because Rebecca Cohn was far enough from any other venue that it would have required a whole lot of effort to get anywhere else, partly because the idea of going to a little club after this show and getting blasted in the face with some punk rock wasn’t very palatable and partly because it was going to be more fun to just kick back and hang out with friends afterwards. I’d make up for it the next night.

The Halifax Chronicle-Herald also has a review of the show. She now opens up a series of cross-Canada shows for Josh Ritter, including tomorrow night at The Phoenix.

Photos: Basia Bulat with Symphony Nova Scotia @ Rebecca Cohn Auditorium – October 22, 2010
MP3: Basia Bulat – “Go On”
MP3: Basia Bulat – “Gold Rush”
MP3: Basia Bulat – “In The Night”
MP3: Basia Bulat – “Snakes & Ladders”
Video: Basia Bulat – “The Pilgriming Vine”
Video: Basia Bulat – “In The Night”
MySpace: Basia Bulat

Rae Spoon rolled out a couple more videos from Love Is A Hunter over the last while.

Video: Rae Spoon – “There is a Light (but it’s not for everyone)”
Video: Rae Spoon – “Joan”

Sufjan Stevens talks about some of the personal issues that informed and delayed The Age Of Adz with Exclaim.

The Vancouver Sun talks to Matt Ward of She & Him.

The Asheville Citizen-Times chats with Band Of Horses’ Bill Reynolds and Tyler Ramsey.

NPR interviews School Of Seven Bells.

The video for Johnny Flynn’s new single is out, featuring a live performance in a garden with Laura Marling covering her parts as she does on the studio version on Been Listening. Flynn will be at Lee’s Palace on November 14.

Video: Johnny Flynn with Laura Marling – “The Water”

A couple of interesting international bands are on the Nu Music Nite bill at The Horseshoe tomorrow night (October 26). From the UK there’s folk singer Alessi’s Ark and all the way from Australia, The Jezebels. Easier for you to give the samples a listen, than for me to try and describe a couple of acts I’m only a little familiar with, but the combination of both on one bill and it being free makes it hard for me to stay cooped up at home, as much as I’d like to.

MP3: The Jezebels – “Mace Spray”
MP3: Alessi’s Ark – “Hands In The Sink”

The Dumbing Of America and The Seattle Post-Intelligencer interview Sky Larkin, who are in town at the Horseshoe on Wednesday night.

Under The Radar talks to Rose Elinor Dougall.

Lykke Li has put out a new single – mainly digital but also as a 7″ for collectors – and you can download the a-side below and the b-side at her website. A new album should be out in the early part of next year.

MP3: Lykke Li – “Get Some”